


What Would Jason Do?

by entwashian



Category: The Good Place (TV)
Genre: Found Family, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-24
Updated: 2020-10-24
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:08:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 764
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27173590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/entwashian/pseuds/entwashian
Summary: A tag or coda to the series finale, featuring Janet's choices about her continuing existence in the Good Place.
Comments: 12
Kudos: 24
Collections: Trick or Treat Exchange 2020





	What Would Jason Do?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [possibilityleft](https://archiveofourown.org/users/possibilityleft/gifts).



"Janet?" asked Janet. 

One of the Good Place Janets arrived with a ping. "Hey, there!" 

"My void is feeling unexpectedly full of memories of people and places and things at present, so I was wondering if I could scream into yours? Please," Janet asked politely. 

"Sure thing!" said Janet, opening her mouth wide. And wider. And wider. 

Janet stuck her head into Janet's mouth and screamed. She screamed until the sound waves in her voice hit the farthest corners of the other Janet's void and echoed back to her own ears. Then she straightened up, smoothing out the wrinkles in her vest. 

"Thanks, Janet," she said. "I feel much better now." 

"Any time," Janet said warmly, then pinged out. 

Janet stood alone and, having finished smoothing out the wrinkles in her vest, ran her hands down the length of her skirt. As she did so, the purple heart pendant dangled on its chain around her neck, beating slowly against her chest.

* * *

"Doug, Pillboi, thanks for meeting with me," Janet said, folding her hands on her desk. 

Doug clutched at the armrests of his chair across from her, half out of his seat. "If this is about the robot elephants, we had no idea that the laser vision would start setting things on fire." 

Pillboi put out a quelling hand toward Doug. "Yeah, and if this is not about things being set on fire, we have no idea about the existence of any robot elephants."

Janet smiled at them. "I knew I could count on you two." She reached into a desk drawer and pulled out a small remote control. She clicked the button, and a slideshow popped up above her right shoulder. The first image showed a crowd of sad people. It had a giant red X across it. 

"When Jason, Chidi, Tahani, & Eleanor became the first people in 500 years to be admitted to the Good Place -- along with Michael and myself -- we discovered that people here were bored. There was no meaning to anything they did, and found no reason to continue existing." Janet clicked the button. An image appeared of Michael, complete with his ceremonial robe and rainbow-beribboned medal. 

"We came up with a plan that Michael, as the new head of the Good Place, enacted. With the addition of a doorway that anyone can walk through at any time, the afterlife no longer has to be eternal. This restored a sense of meaning and purpose to many of the people here. But --" Janet clicked the button again, and a graphic of a giant question mark filled the display "-- although the trial system set up by the committee allows people to pass through testing allows people to reach a certain level of self-realization, once they reach the Good Place, many of them still lack the resources to achieve self-actualization, through the limitations of their own imaginations."

"This is probably why the Good Place used to be run by a council," Janet continued, "but they retired and left the community in Michael's care." 

"Hey, I haven't seen Michael around in a while," Doug said. "How is he?" 

"Human," Janet replied. 

"Dope," said Pillboi. "Tell him I said 'high.' He really needs to try some oxycontin sometime. It's a life-changing experience." 

"I'll pass it along," Janet, who had no intention of doing so, said. "But that does bring up one of the issues we're having now: with Michael on Earth, I'm running the Good Place by myself. And I could use some help -- your help -- to shake things up and provide people with some new situations and new experiences." 

"I'll do my best," Doug said, very seriously, then added, "but I've gotta warn you: I'm not very good at running. The cops caught me every time."

"Doug!" Pillboi said with exasperation. "She means like a _job_. She wants us to help take care of this place."

Janet nodded. "And come up with new ideas." 

"Ideas! I got ideas!" Doug said. "What about an energy drink that's also--" 

"I've heard that one," Janet broke in. "I was thinking of something bigger than that."

"A hot tub filled with Jell-O?" Pillboy asked. 

"Bigger," Janet said. 

"Elephants with laser eyes?" Doug said hopefully. 

"Even bigger," Janet said. 

"Doug, do you remember what you said to me that one night in Tampa after we ate all the edibles we stole from the lawyer & his dog? You had a plan for what you wanted to do for the rest of our lives." 

"No, but I'd love to hear it," Doug said. 

"So would I," said Janet, leaning forward.


End file.
